Beautiful Katamari

Game Summary

The King of All Cosmos and the Prince have returned in amazing Next
Generation brilliance! The game that took the video game world by storm is set
to continue rolling with new stages, cousins, and visual style.
Play as the Prince or one of the cousins, new and old, to roll up objects in
all-new stages and missions as you explore this brand new creative exploration.
With this new era, the hit style of gameplay is able to present an experience
only hinted at in previous versions. Seamless katamari growing and animated
presents add to the experience that has captivated hardcore and casual gamers
everywhere.

After the success of Sony's recent God of War re-release, in which both original God of War titles were given the HD treatment and released on a single Blu-ray disc for PS3, Sony is apparently looking into giving other series similar makeovers. A Kotaku reader sent them a snapshot over the weekend of a Sony survey that asked the question "What titles would you like to see in a future collection (2 or more PS2 titles upgraded with similar features to God of War Collection)?"
Is Sony simply "wallet mining," as one commenter said, by planning on repackaging every single PS2 title that could make them a shred of cash, or will only the games people are interested in- and the ones that really deserve to be revisited- be making it back to store shelves?
More speculation after the jump. Read More

Today, Namco Bandai Games revealed that they are going to make a greater push into the arena of digital distribution by expanding its presence on Xbox LIVE Games on Demand and the PlayStation Network's PlayStation Portable titles and PS One Classics.
"Expanding our digital distribution presence across all major platforms is an essential part of our worldwide corporate strategy," said Robert Stevenson, Vice President of Online Development at Namco Bandai Games America Inc. "Through this initiative, our consumers will have access to our latest releases, bestsellers and hard to find classics with the press of a button."
Titles currently available include Ridge Racer 6 on Xbox 360 for 1,600 Microsoft Points, Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny and Tekken 6 on PSP for $39.99, Ridge Racer for PSP for $14.99, and Me & My Katamari for $19.99. Coming in the first quarter of 2010 to Xbox 360 will be Beautiful Katamari, whose price has not yet been listed. Read More

If you've got a hankerin' for a game that just demands to be satisfied immediately, then Microsoft has good news for you, as they have added two new titles to their Games on Demand service.
Now, you can download Crackdown for a mere $19.99, though word has it you can find a retail copy for less in some parts. Kotaku says that Beautiful Katamari is also available, but the Xbox LIVE Marketplace website seems to disagree. Perhaps this is one of those "availability and pricing in your country of choice may vary" situations, though it's interesting the U.S. site they link to wouldn't have it. Read More

With current PS3 titles like Resident Evil 5 receiving motion support, one would think developers would do the same with the 360, right? It seems just the opposite.
In a recent interview with Destructoid, Microsoft's very own Kudo Tsunoda stated some unfortunate news. While a few older titles such as Beautiful Katamari and Space Invaders Extreme have been recoded to work with Natal, such programming requires extensive parts of the game to be redone. Basically, it's too time-consuming and forces developers to redo the game.
Your favorite 360 games could very well see a motion-enhanced release, but it's unlikely. Read More

The original Katamari Damacy stole my heart and soul as soon as I picked up the PS2 controller and gave it a roll. The quirky, zany and oh-so-Japanese style pushed the concept of gaming for me in all sorts of unique and odd directions. I will say here and now that Katamari Damacy ranks as one of my favorite gaming experiences of all time.
That means that I was right there as the series lost momentum and began to spit and sputter its way through We Love Katamari, Me and My Katamari (PSP), I Love Katamari (iPhone, the one with broken controls) and Beautiful Katamari (360). The charm and appeal to the series degraded through issues in control and graphical slowdown and clipping. As the consoles and methods evolved, this game stayed the same and then started to get worse. As a fan that wanted more and more from Katamari, it started to get frustrating when I got less and less. I still loved the series and the experiences within, of course, but it just wasn't the same.
Katamari Forever looks to serve as a testament to all that's wonderful in the Katamari universe.
Hit the break to continue reading our impressions of the game at E3... Read More

Revealed to start out as a PS3 exclusive about a month ago, this new Katamari game looks to realize the title's legacy in full 1080p. It's known in Japan as 'Katamari Damacy Tribute', but for the rest of us it's to be called Katamari Forever. Enjoy the trailer above.
So, 1080p, cel-shaded/comic/wood-grain filters, and some more of that incredible Katamari music? Where do I sign? I will say that I recognize some areas, albeit with the brief glimspes in the trailer, from the 360's Beautiful Katamari. Areas like the race track, for starters.
Katamari Damacy is one of my favorite video games. I will say that, as great as it looked, Beautiful Katamari feel largely short of my expectations. Not because it wasn't good, but because I don't think it was fully realized. Plus it felt damn short!
Katamari Forever, you better be amazing! The trailer puts the release time for this one in Fall of '09. Read More

Target.com isn't exactly known for their bleeding edge game news but it seems as if they got the jump on what could be an unnannounced game coming to the PlayStation 3. Beautiful Katamari which was released for the Xbox 360 back in late 2007, is listed on the Target preorder page as a PlayStation 3 title that will be released in February 2009 for $39.99.
$40 for a game that is already plaguing bargain bins on a competing console? Sounds like a pretty great deal. Next thing you know they'll be releasing Vampire Rain for the PlayStation 3... oh wait. Read More

One of the most hyped features (somewhere after Netflix and Avatars) of the New Xbox Experience is the ability to install games to the Xbox 360's hard drive. However, as Halo 3 has taught us, it's not quite a perfect procedure. In fact, it would seem that there is a small number of titles which don't really see any improvement when installed, thanks to the way the developers designed them.
According to Destructoid, these titles are Big Bumpin', College Hoops 2k7, Pocket Bike Racers, Sneak King, Crackdown, Dead or Alive Xtreme 2, and Quake II from the Quake IV Bonus Disc (according to NeoGAF). Or, to put it in a different perspective, it's the three Burger King promo games, an out-of-date basketball game, a game most people bought just to get into the Halo 3 beta, and a game most people probably don't want anyone else knowing they own, anyway. Takes a bit of the sting out of it, I figure.
So now we know which ones don't work. But of those that do work, how much space will they take up? This is a question that's no doubt on the minds of many... or at least, however many bought a 360 with a 20GB hard drive.
Fortunately, Sean has compiled a list over at NeoGAF which answers that very question, along with a few notes here and there about the reduction in load times. However, he notes "I can't possibly verify all of these sizes/notes, just going off of what people tell me. If there's an error please correct it and be nice about it."
For your Kombo Konvenience, the list is posted right after the kut... er, cut.
Whew, that was close. Read More